Lutetium oxyorthosilicate (LSO) and lutetium-yttrium oxyorthosilicate (LYSO) single crystals were grown by Czochralski method and samples with dimension of 17 mm in cubic were made. The optical and scintillation properties for these samples were performed. It was found that optical transmittance observed for both LSO and LYSO matches well with the theoretical limits. The light output (L.O.) measured by a PMT with bialkali cathode was found to be 4100 p.e./MeV with an energy resolution of 10.2% and a decay time of 42 ns. Light output non-proportionality was found in energy scale below 356 keV. The gamma-ray induced afterglow in LYSO found much less than that of the LSO sample. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.